THE COMEBACK CURD

With podium appearances in 2015 and 2016, Katy Curd was on the path to becoming a top World Cup downhiller. But successive crashes last year left the former 4X world champ with serious head injuries and doubts over her racing future. Miraculously, she’s now back between the tape, riding for Specialized UK.

“I didn’t think too much of my crash in Fort William,” explains Katy, “But going over the bars onto my head again in Leogang the following week gave me a double concussion.” Over the year her symptoms worsened, with headaches, intense pain, pressure build-up, dizziness and problems with her eyesight and breathing. “Even talking became an e ort,” she says. “Not only was it scary but it got me pretty depressed.”

Thankfully, the Forest of Dean local was able to get through some tough times and back to race fitness with help from corrective exercise specialist Adrian Stokes. “I developed so much as a rider, under him, that I could start almost where I left o ,” she says.

Finishing third at the first round of the new UK National Downhill Series and eighth at the opening World Cup, Katy clearly hasn’t lost any speed – and she’s only been back training for four months. “I’m really excited for the racing this year,” she says. “My plan is just to have fun. I’m working and training every day to somehow make it work. I might be broke by the end of it, but it’ll be worth it!”